Death and Mercy: ANGEL
by hakojo
Summary: Salvation can find you where you least expect it. Oneshot, SAC continuity.


死と慈悲 (Death and Mercy): ANGEL

_Plip. Plip. Plip._

The remnants of the rain dripped steadily onto the field of shattered concrete, the sound boring into his head.

He welcomed it; anything to distract him from the pain that had consumed his body.

His hand was still pinned to the stone pillar; apparently his captor wasn't taking any chances. He could still see her through his remaining eye, bathed in the hazy golden light of the setting sun, slightly blurred as a result of the trauma to his skull.

"The rest of my team's on their way here," she said slowly. "We'll get you patched up. Just hang on."

Her tone wasn't particularly urgent, but he could see her impatience in the way she stood, the way her eyes shifted constantly between him and the shadowed staircase in the corner.

The rest of her team…the ones he hadn't managed to pick off.

"I…I should be dead…" he mumbled, his voice shaking. "Should be…"

"Quiet," said the woman. "You're going into shock."

She froze for a moment, and then knelt down in front of him, the dusty light settling in the form of a halo around her wet hair. Their eyes met, level with one another, and his mouth sagged into a lopsided grin.

What a face…

"Keep focused on me, all right?" she said.

He nodded; her and the sound of the water, echoing all around them.

_Plip. Plip. Plip._

He wasn't sure which terrified him more; her determination to disable him only a few minutes ago, or her determination to keep him alive now. Her cherry-red eyes dominated what remained of his field of vision, daring him to look away, to let go.

What a _face_…

"By the way," she said, "do you have a name?"

His mind was sluggish, due to the fact that the left side of his head seemed to have disappeared into a sea of pain, and it took him a little while to process the question.

"Saito…" he managed to stammer. "I-I'm called Saito…"

Her eyebrows raised a fraction of a centimeter in mild surprise.

"You're Japanese?"

He swallowed nervously in response; it was the best he could manage.

"What a coincidence, so are we. What unit are you with?"

He swallowed again.

"N-Nobody…they all got wiped out…"

Another sound cut across the endless drip of the rain; the rough, heavy pounding of footsteps.

The woman's eyes flicked to one side and then back again.

"It's about time."

The footsteps drew closer and then stopped short.

"So this is your 'man down'?"

A male voice, low and gruff. The sound of something heavy hitting the ground.

"I know it's not my place to be saying this, Major, but are you out of your damn _mind_?"

"Maybe," said the woman coolly. "Bring the field kit over here – he's in pretty bad shape."

One set of footsteps moved further in, splashing through the puddles that had gathered on the stone.

"Bad shape…jeez…it might have been kinder if you'd just killed him…"

"Well, I didn't."

She reached for something at her side, her eyes never leaving his. Her hand came into view, holding a flat-headed syringe, which she pressed against his neck.

A click, a hiss, and the pain began to melt away into a numb coolness. He closed his eye, relaxing into it.

"Hey," she said, shaking his shoulder roughly. "Stay awake – I'm not done with you yet."

Her eyes met his once more, and he found himself able to focus again.

"What are we supposed to do with him, anyway?"

Another man's voice, further away.

"Take him with us, of course," said the woman. "It's not like he's in any condition to try anything."

She pressed a thick pad around the bloody hole where her victim's eye had been, and then wound a length of bandage tightly around it.

"Besides, he says he's from Japan – we can pass him off as a member of another unit who got stranded here. It's not too far off from the truth, after all."

She reached up, yanking her knife out of the stone in one swift movement, and his hand exploded into pain again. Quickly, she padded it with more gauze and bandaged the wound.

"There; that should hold until we get back to base."

She stood up, slinging her rifle over her shoulder.

"Batou; you still have the pod?"

"Safe and sound."

"Right - let's move out before it gets dark. You too, Saito."

He struggled unsteadily to his feet, leaning on the pillar for support; his entire left arm was numb.

"Hey, Major…"

The first man's voice. The woman turned her head, one hand on her hip.

"What?"

"We left with eight…any thoughts about how exactly we're going to explain this to command?"

She sighed.

"We tell them the truth – the rest of the team got taken out by one hell of a tough sniper."

She looked over her shoulder, and her eyes burned straight into him again. Her whole being seemed to glow in the sunset.

_From now on, you're mine._

He had no right to refuse her – she would have been perfectly justified in killing him, but not only had she restrained herself, she was offering him a position, and maybe even a way home.

She held her hand out; he could almost see his life sitting there in her palm, completely at her mercy.

"Let's go."

He took one unsteady step forward, and then another.

"Yes, ma'am…"

* * *

(A/N: For diamondedge0002; happy birthday! :D She mentioned to me that she's been looking for some good Major/Saito material, and while it kind of goes against all of my canon instincts to actually write them as a couple, I thought it would be interesting to do a little snippet focusing on their relationship, such as it is.

I think they actually revoke your GitS fanwriter license if you don't do a "what happened directly after the story in POKER FACE" fic, so after this I should be clear for another four years, or at least until the "overpowered Mary Sue OC who joins Section 9" requirement comes up. Maybe they'll just let me write about Batou falling in love with a tachikoma in a human body instead.)


End file.
